Friends,
I've got two major legislative updates below. Both bills are very important and we need to contact our delegates on the committees listed below to make sure these bills become a reality. Thank you for taking the time to read through! - Bob
VA Light Bulb Manufacturer and VA vs. EPA/Corp of Engineers
My HB 66 would allow Virginia companies to manufacture and sell incandescent light bulbs only within Virginia despite the Federal ban on incandescent bulbs which will take effect next year. The federal ban was enacted on grounds that fluorescent lights were more cost effective. Under conditions of normal use the fluorescent lights wear out much faster than incandescent ones which are not affected by constant on and off use. (See http://freedomlightbulb.blogspot.com for problems with CFL bulbs.)
HB 66 will be heard in subcommittee Thursday afternoon, January 26, 2012. Please contact the members of the Labor and Commerce Committee (See below.)
HB 66 will help protect Virginia citizens from possible mercury contamination from incorrect disposal of Compact Fluorescent Bulbs or home accidents which require near hazardous materials treatment. Two hundred and twenty families lost their breadwinner in Winchester, VA when the last American GE plant making Thomas Edison’s incandescent light bulbs was shut down in 2010 as a result of the Congressional ban.
These jobs were lost when GE shifted manufacture of the CFL's out of the country. Lastly, the Federal ban is a 10th amendment issue. Congress should not be telling Virginians what type of light bulbs they should purchase and use. The people of Virginia should be able to choose when it comes to issues such as safety and jobs.
Thanks.
- Delegate Bob Marshall
Virginia vs. EPA Clean Water Act Controls
My HB 67 will ensure that Virginia controls and regulates its non-navigable waters. The bill will be heard Thursday, January 26, 2012, in the 7-West Conference Room of the General Assembly Building. This legislation is to help prevent cases where farmers and other property owners have been buried under EPA or Corps of Engineers regulations as a result of a large puddle or very small normally dry pond on their property because of the Migratory Bird Rule (also known as the” glancing goose test”) which in essence says if your property gets wet enough at any time of the year for a migratory bird to see its reflection, then the EPA can regulate that property as a wetland.
Passage of my HB 67 will ensure that this sort of Federal Government micro management does not occur. Please ask members of the Subcommittee (below) to support HB 67.
Thanks.
- Delegate Bob Marshall
House Agriculture, Chesapeake and Natural Resources Chesapeake Subcommittee
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